Author Topic: George Robert Stephenson  (Read 34051 times)

Offline rsroper

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #18 on: Wednesday 29 December 10 15:33 GMT (UK) »
Joe,

Offline rsroper

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #19 on: Wednesday 29 December 10 15:34 GMT (UK) »
Joe,

Offline Chriswood

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #20 on: Friday 31 December 10 04:22 GMT (UK) »
Hi Everyone,
I wonder if anyone can help (or if what I say helps anyone). I'm trying to trace family connection to George Stephenson. There is a family tradition handed down from my Great Grandmother (Fanny Wood, ne Smith) that we are related to GS. Fanny's mother was one Elizabeth Stephenson who married a George Smith (Grocer and leader in Catholic Apostolic Church) on the Isle of Wight (evidence: Birth Certificate). Elizabeth Stephenson was born in 1818/19 (Evidence: We have an original sampler stitched by Elizabeth Stephenson with the inscription: 'Elizabeth Stephenson Aged 12 Years 1831' & Fanny Smith's Birthday Book with entry 'Mother, 1819. The Northumberland and Durham Baptism record lists only one Elizabeth Stephenson born in these years. Elizabeth Stephenson, 30 Nov 1818 Father's forenames: George / Mother's forenames Elizabeth. The Stephenson Locomotive Society has a chart of the Stephenson family (3 generations: http://www.stephensonloco.org.uk/SLSgeorge.htm) which names three Elizabeths - daughters of George's brothers, James, Robert and John. But then the trail goes cold. I have some ideas about this, but, they need rigorous research. By the way, I also have two family albums with about forty images of the family. If anyone is interested, I'll scan and put on my flickr site.
Best
Chris

Offline Chriswood

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #21 on: Friday 31 December 10 04:38 GMT (UK) »
From Chris Again. Sorry, I forgot to mention that Elizabeth Stephenson's baptism record states that she was baptised/registered at:
Tynemouth, Christ Church, Northumberland.
Also: For three generations our family middle names have been 'Stephenson' and 'Graham'. 'Graham' is irrelevant because it comes from the Smith line - one of whom was Cyril Graham Smith.
Also, I should mention, most of the photographs are unidentified.
Best
Chris


Offline mikegs

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #22 on: Friday 02 September 11 04:59 BST (UK) »
Chris,
My father was Cyril Graham-Smith, and his father, John Anderson Smith, and Fanny Wood (Smith) were brother and sister. He also believed that he was descended from George Robert Stephenson.
I checked with The Institution of Mechanical Engineers in London, who had kept a comprehensive Stephenson Family Tree. I believe that he was their first President. They stated there definitely was no link.
There was an Elizabeth Stephenson in their Family Tree but she had no children.
We must be distant cousins!
Mike.

Offline Chriswood

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #23 on: Friday 02 September 11 06:39 BST (UK) »
Dear Mike,
How fascinating that you should find me. We are indeed cousins, but not so distant. My father is the grandson of Fanny Smith (Wood), who, by my reckonning, was your great aunt! Fanny married Alfred Wood, and they migrated to Australia in 1887. They had five surviving children, Geoffrey (my father's father), Marjorie, Edith, Ronald and Helen. My father (John Graham Wood - note family middle name; I'm Christopher Graham Wood) was an only child, but had two sons, my brother and I. My younger brother David Stephenson (!) Wood, is Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Curtain University, Western Australia, and I am founder-director of an Australian educational study tour company, Australians Studying Abroad (www.asatours.com.au).
But now to the interesting stuff. My great aunts (Marjorie, Edith, Helen) were spinsters. They left a considerable family archive, including three tantalising photo albums, with a number of photographs of your family in them. There are also letters. I shall try to scan as many as possible and either send them to you by e-mail, or put them up on my flickr site.
As to George Stephenson. Fascinating how family myths develop! That two branches of a family should share the myth. Since my last post, by cross referencing photographs, letters, and census information, I've worked out who the Stephensons were. George Stephenson was a pianoforte maker (we have a French harmonium of 1855 that he obviously owned) who moved south from the Newcastle area (hence the connection with the George Stephenson of Rocket fame - they must have lived nearby), and his daughter, Elizabeth Stephenson our mutual matriarch!!), was born in London, in either 1819 (1851 census) or 1821 (1841 census - RG No. HO107, Piece 685 Book/Foli 15/30, p.55). At the time of the 1841 census, George and Ann, and their children Elizabeth, Nathaniel, Jane, Robert, Thomas, Ann and Fanny were living in Hampden Street, St Pancras, Marylbone. In the 1851 census Elizabeth (now aged 30 or 32) was actually with her mother and father in London. George Smith, husband of Elizabeth and our mutual patriarch, and their first daughter, Elizabeth, were at the Parkhurst Barracks Canteen, Carisbrooke, Hampshire - (occupation: Innkeeper). In 1861 Census, George, Elizabeth and their living children Nathaniel Graham, John Anderson (grandpa), George Christopher (who migrated to New Zealand) Isabella S, and Fanny Jane (my great grandmother), were living at Lugley Street, Newport, Isle of White.
This is written in great haste, there's lots more, including a photograph of Cyril as a boy with toy boats. I 'phoned my father. He's tickled pink, and sends his regards!
Chris Wood

Offline mikegs

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #24 on: Friday 02 September 11 19:09 BST (UK) »
Dear Chris,
I am flabbergasted to get your reply so quickly and I would dearly like to keep in touch, but as I have only just signed on to this site, I can not either send or receive Personal Messages from you until I have made at least 3 posts! I can not read the message you have sent.
I obviously have quite a lot of "Smith" history about those who stayed in England, but not much luck about those who went either to Australia or New Zealand.
The Smith family also included Sarah Ann Byam Smith, who died when only 3.
My Sister has a daughter who is married and lives in Sydney!
I also have the photo of my Father with his model boats!
I will send you my Email Address as soon as I can send you a Personal Message.
Best Wishes to you and your family.
Mike.


Offline Chriswood

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #25 on: Saturday 03 September 11 02:16 BST (UK) »
Dear Mike,
I sent you an e-mail that you'll obviously get when you have posted three times. We're all so looking forward to hearing from you and sharing information. I've begun to scan the albums, and hopefully, when we can exchange e-mails, will be able to show you all of them (there are about 50 photos - all sent to Fanny from 'home' between 1887 and 1910. In the meantime, we're actually sorting the archive because I'm trying to find time to write a book about Marjorie Wood. The three 'aunts' - or 'the girls' - as everyone called them (Marjorie, Edith, Helen) were very close to a young man with whom they formed a literary society - just a little one called the 'Bloody Little Rosebuds' (I have their minute book). The young man's name was Harry Tatlock Miller, and together they launched Australia's first avant garde arts journal, called 'Manuscripts' in the early 1930s. Harry Tatlock Miller went on to run the Redfern Gallery in London, and his lifelong friend, Loudon Sainthill, became one of Britain's great theatre designers (RSC, etc., he also designed the sets for the film Look Back in Anger). In the archive the aunts left a large collection of Marjorie's drawings and writings, which a friend is at present cataloguing. I've put some photos of the aunts and the drawings up on flickr - you might like to have a look: http://www.flickr.com/photos/australiansstudyingabroad/collections/72157625398036995/
Many of Marjorie's drawings, lino cuts, and pen and inks were of elves, goblins, etc., and she wrote and told wonderful stories about them. She is remembered in a book by the Australian artist Robert Ingpen, whom she inspired as a young boy... Robert Ingpen, Australian Gnomes, Melbourne, Rigby, 1979). The aunts spoke beautifully - not toffy, but exemplary grammar (something they got from their mother) and had very good - sometimes wicked - senses of humour. Fanny (she was called 'Lou' in Oz) seems to have been extremely well-educated and imaginative. The family were members of the Catholic Apostolic Church, and became Anglicans when the last 'Angel' died. Does any of this resonate?
When the aunts' older brother Geoffrey (my grand father) was fighting in WWI, he used to spend much of his leave and convalescence (he was wounded in France) with his aunt Isabel and her daughter - his cousin - Nan. We have his letters home...
I've letters and photos from George Christopher from New Zealand, but haven't been able to trace the family there.
We can't wait to correspond. Dad is on cloud nine to know we've found his family!
Best
Chris
PS Edith's full name was Edith Victoria Anderson Wood

Offline mikegs

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Re: George Robert Stephenson
« Reply #26 on: Sunday 04 September 11 01:03 BST (UK) »
Dear Chris,
I am not going to be able to keep up with you. I am a "Two fingered Typist" and I am going to be 80 next month!
My Smith and Stephenson records don't go back very far. George Smith's father was John Smith and I think that I found the right family, but it is very difficult to know for sure. If I am right George had a brother Charles.
Elizabeth Stephenson and her Father is my limit on that side.
John Anderson Smith Married Elizabeth Roskilly and had 6 children, but only 2 produced Grandchildren - Cyril and Winifred. Winifred married Richard Pentony and had one son who died young and 3 daughters who all married and had children and grandchildren.
My father, Cyril, has a story that is more complicated as he married twice. He had an illustrious career - first going out as a teenager to the Boer War as a Sapper running a searchlight. After returning he became a Civil Engineer and went to India to build enormous bridges for the railways. He later taught Engineering in Poona and wound up as Principal of the College. He was also involved with the military and became Colonel of the Poona Rifles. There is a good bit more, but it will have to wait till I can use Email for it.
Thank you again for your quick reply.
Mike.